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Ideas In Action with Jim Glassman

The Financial Crisis: Robert J. Samuelson (#110)

Guest: Robert Samuelson, Newsweek columnist and author of "The Great Inflation and Its Aftermath: the Past and Future of American Affluence"

Jim conducts a one-on-one interview with Robert Samuelson regarding the financial crisis and what Samuelson calls a "massive candor gap" by the U.S. government on the consequences of huge federal spending and enormous deficits. If there is no honest accounting today, there may be much more draconian - and painful - measures in the future. [26 minutes]

This episode has not aired in the past few months on Iowa Public Television.

Series Description: From the producers of "Think Tank with Ben Wattenburg," Ideas in Action with Jim Glassman is a new half-hour weekly series on ideas and their consequences. Each edition of Ideas in Action presents a discussion of trends, conditions, and ideas behind the week's headlines. In the tradition of the long-running PBS series Think Tank, the program limits itself to one topic per half-hour edition in order to go deeper into a subject than the average TV show. Viewers engage with a diverse group of economists, historians, anthropologists, political scientists, demographers, and social philosophers, as well as authorities from many other disciplines.

Guests: Peter Ackerman, Chairman of the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict Goli Ameri, fmr. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Education and Cultural Affairs David Nassar, Executive Director of the Alliance of Youth Movements Mohsen Sazegara, Iranian Journalist, Bush Institute Visiting Fellow, pro-democracy activist.
Jim and guests discuss the effect of the internet and the use of cyber tools such as Facebook and Twitter on movements for democracy and freedom in Iran (following the disputed June 2009 elections), and other parts of the world. [26 minutes]

Guests: George Gilder, Senior Fellow, the Discovery Institute; Charles Freeman, Freeman Chair in China Studies, the Center for Strategic and International Studies; and Gordon Chang, columnist at Forbes.com and author of The Coming Collapse of China.
China's economic growth seems staggering, leading many to wonder if the 21st century will belong to China. China is now America's biggest lender, leading to U.S. fears of increasing Chinese leverage over its economy. Tensions are rising between the U.S. and China over trade, currency, natural resources and global influence. How should the U.S. respond to the rise of China as a world power? [26 minutes]

Guests: George Gilder, Senior Fellow, the Discovery Institute; Charles Freeman, Freeman Chair in China Studies, the Center for Strategic and International Studies; and Gordon Chang, columnist at Forbes.com and author of The Coming Collapse of China.
Part two of a roundtable discussion on China's rise as an economic power. China is now America's biggest lender, leading to U.S. fears of increasing Chinese leverage over its economy. Tensions are rising between the U.S. and China over trade, currency, natural resources and global influence. But China faces internal problems including repression of human rights, a growing disparity between old and young in its work force and an increasingly educated and growing middle class which could threaten the hold the Communist leaders still have on the country. Jim and his guests discuss China's rise as a global power and what it means for the U.S. [26 minutes]

Guests: Dan Senor, co-author Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle, George Gilder, Senior Fellow, the Discovery Institute and author The Israel Test, and Amit Shafrir, Internet entrepreneur and COO of Ourparents, Inc.
The modern state of Israel is only 60 years old. Its population is smaller than some U.S. states. Geography-wise, Israel sits in the middle of hostile territory. Yet this tiny nation is forecasted to grow 3.5% in 2010, attracts more venture capital investments per capita than any other country, and its high-technology sector rivals that of the U.S. This episode examines Israel's unique attributes that lead to successful innovation and risk-taking, and the lessons the U.S. can learn from it. [26 minutes]

Guest: Robert Samuelson, Newsweek columnist and author of "The Great Inflation and Its Aftermath: the Past and Future of American Affluence"
Jim conducts a one-on-one interview with Robert Samuelson regarding the financial crisis and what Samuelson calls a "massive candor gap" by the U.S. government on the consequences of huge federal spending and enormous deficits. If there is no honest accounting today, there may be much more draconian - and painful - measures in the future. [26 minutes]

Guests: Former First Lady Laura Bush, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verver, The Director General of Unesco, Irina Bokova, Afghan Ambassador Said Jawad.
Jim interviews former First Lady Laura Bush, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verveer, The Director General of Unesco, Irina Bokova and Afghan Ambassador Said Jawad regarding the status of women in Afghanistan today and how the U.S. - Afghan Women's Council is helping them gain greater access to education, social rights and economic freedom, education, social rights and economic freedom. [26 minutes]

Guests: Daniel Yergin, Dana Murphy, Commissioner of the Oklahoma Corporation, Joseph Sluzar, County Attorney for Broome County , NY.
Jim conducts a panel discussion with Daniel Yergin, world-renowned expert on oil and gas issues, Dana Murphy, Commissioner of the Oklahoma Corporation, the state regulatory body in charge of natural gas exploration and Joseph Sluzar, County Attorney for Broome County, NY, which encompasses the largest known natural gas field in the U.S. about the economic, environmental and national security issues attendant with drilling for natural gas in the United States. [26 minutes]

Guest: Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
Jim conducts a one-on-one interview with former Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson about what he experienced during crux of the financial crisis, and what he would change about America's financial system to ward off a crisis of that magnitude in the future. [26 minutes]

Guests: Abraham Sofaer: Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, author, The Best Defense? Legitimacy and Preventive Force, former counsel, Reagan White House. Gary Solis, Georgetown University Law Professor, author, The Law of Armed Conflict: International Humanitarian Law in War, P.W. Singer, Sr. Fellow, Brookings Institution and author, Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century.
Jim Glassman hosts a wide-ranging discussion about the legality and morality of using drones to target terrorists and enemies in Afghanistan and Pakistan. [26 minutes]

Guests: Thomas Donnelly, American Enterprise Institute, Andrew Exum, Center for a New American Security, Matthew Hoh, Former State Department Employee who quit in protest over President Obama's Afghan policy.
The Bush Administration's decision to institute a surge of American troops in Iraq was viewed with skepticism and outright hostility by many critics of the war. But it was a success. Now, the Obama Administration is using a play from the same book in Afghanistan. To what extent is Afghanistan similar to - and different from Iraq? And how should the U.S. military pursue victory in Afghanistan? [26 minutes]

Guest: Elliott Abrams, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
A one-on-one interview with Elliott Abrams, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and former Deputy National Security Adviser under President George W. Bush. [26 minutes]

Guests: Ambassador Clayton Yeutter, former USTR., Lori Wallach, Director, Global Trade Watch, Public Citizen, Dan Ikenson, Center for Trade Policy Studies, CATO Institute.
A discussion of plans to double U.S. exports in the next five years. Whether it can be done and how to try. [26 minutes]

Guests: Former First Lady Laura Bush, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verver, The Director General of Unesco, Irina Bokova, Afghan Ambassador Said Jawad.
Jim interviews former First Lady Laura Bush, U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verveer, The Director General of Unesco, Irina Bokova and Afghan Ambassador Said Jawad regarding the status of women in Afghanistan today and how the U.S. - Afghan Women's Council is helping them gain greater access to education, social rights and economic freedom, education, social rights and economic freedom. [26 minutes]

Guests: Christopher Walker, Director of Studies at Freedom House, Jeff Gedmin, President of Radio Free Europe, David Keyes, Founder of cyberdissidents.org, Bari Weiss, Assistant Editorial Features Editor, Wall Street Journal.
Jim talks with Christopher Walker, Director of Studies at Freedom House, Jeff Gedmin, President of Radio Free Europe,David Keyes, founder of Cyberdissidents.org, and Bari Weiss, Assistant Editorial Features Editor, Wall Street Journal about the ways dissidents are using the internet to communicate with each other and the outside world. [26 minutes]

Guests: Paul Ingrassia, former WSJ Detroit Bureau Chief and winner of a 1993 Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of General Motors; Tamara Darvish, Vice President of DARCARS Automotive Group Anthony Yezer, Professor of Economics, George Washington University.
Where does the auto industry stand two years after the federal government provided huge loans to automakers in distress? What have they done to rebound and are they set on a course for a strong future? [26 minutes]

Guests: Justin Wilson, Center for Consumer Freedom; Dr. Scott Kahan, Co-director, GWU/Johns Hopkins Weight Management Program Penny Lee, Director, Campaign to End Obesity.
As the number of overweight Americans continues to grow, so do questions about how we, as a society, should respond. A discussion of issues such as personal responsibility, the higher costs of medical care for overweight people, insurance coverage, federal legislation and whether "fattening" foods should be subject to a weight tax. [26 minutes]

Guests: Carl Schramm, President of the Kauffman Foundation, Colonel Mike Meese, who teaches "Expeditionary Economics " at West Point, and Ann Marlow, who posts a blog titled Peace Later! on World Affairs Daily.Org and contributes frequently to the Wall Street Journal and the Weekly Standard. She is also a visiting fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Should DOD be the new AID? The U.S. military has always helped bring order to shattered countries. Now some scholars are arguing the military should re-build shattered economies as well. But is this the right role for U.S. soldiers? [26 minutes]

Guests: Siobhan Gorman, National Intelligence Reporter for the Wall Street Journal, Jeff Moss, founder of Blackhat and DEFCON Cybersecurity Conferences for the security and hacker communities and currently a member of the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory Council and Melissa Hathaway, former Acting Senior Director for Cyberspace at the National Security and Homeland Security Councils.
Nearly a year after the Obama Administration released a report containing a damning assessment of the country's ability to counter an assault on its computer infrastructure, most experts agree we are still critically unprepared for a serious cyberattack. [26 minutes]

Guests: Dan Senor, co-author Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle, George Gilder, Senior Fellow, the Discovery Institute and author The Israel Test, and Amit Shafrir, Internet entrepreneur and COO of Ourparents, Inc. The modern state of
Israel is only 60 years old. Its population is smaller than some U.S. states. Geography-wise, Israel sits in the middle of hostile territory. Yet this tiny nation is forecasted to grow 3.5% in 2010, attracts more venture capital investments per capita than any other country, and its high-technology sector rivals that of the U.S. This episode examines Israel's unique attributes that lead to successful innovation and risk-taking, and the lessons the U.S. can learn from it. [26 minutes]

Guests: Teresa Ghilarducci. Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research and author of When I'm 64: The Plot Against Pensions and the Plan to Save Them. Alex Brill. Research Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former chief economist to the House Ways and Means Committee. Dallas Salisbury.
President and CEO of the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) that reports on the state of retiring America. Over the past three decades defined-benefit plans have been replaced, for the most part, by defined-contribution plans like 401(k)s. But the majority of Americans with access to 401(k)s are not saving the maximum amount they can, and in many cases are not saving at all. Should the government play a greater - or different - role in getting Americans to save more for their retirement? [26 minutes]

Guests: Ben Wildavsky. Author of The Great Brain Race: How Global Universities are Reshaping the World, and a senior fellow at the Kauffman Foundation. Beth McMurtrie, Senior Editor of international-news at The Chronicle of Higher Education. Peter N. Stearns, Provost at George Mason University and author of Educating Global Citizens in Colleges and Universities.
It's not just American business that has gone global; American universities have too. In response to the worldwide demand for American-style higher education, American universities have expanded into countries across the globe - opening branches from Cairo to Canberra. [26 minutes]

Guest: Thomas Sowell. Thomas Sowell is considered one of America's leading conservatives. He analyzes political, economic and foreign policy via his nationally syndicated column. His most recent book, his 46th, is titled Dismantling America, and in it he gives a stark warning about the direction of the country. He and Jim discuss the current state of America and how we got here. [26 minutes]

George Shultz served in four Administrations, serving as an economic advisor to three Presidents before turning his efforts to international relations as Secretary of State for Ronald Reagan at the height of the Cold War. Still actively analyzing policy at the age of 90, he has focused much of his recent efforts on reducing the spread of nuclear weapons. Jim talks with him about his support for eliminating nuclear weapons, and the current state of American politics. [26 minutes]

Washington Post Op-Ed columnist Michael Gerson traveled to South Korea to interview North Koreans who escaped from one of the most repressive and cruel regimes in the world. His conversation with Jim intersperses what he learned with stories told by the dissidents themselves about the incredible ways the regime controls the population of North Korea and how they managed to escape. [26 minutes]

Guests: Teresa Ghilarducci. Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research and author of When I'm 64: The Plot Against Pensions and the Plan to Save Them. Alex Brill. Research Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former chief economist to the House Ways and Means Committee. Dallas Salisbury. President and CEO of the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) that reports on the state of retiring America.
Over the past three decades defined-benefit plans have been replaced, for the most part, by defined-contribution plans like 401(k)s. But the majority of Americans with access to 401(k)s are not saving the maximum amount they can, and in many cases are not saving at all. Should the government play a greater - or different - role in getting Americans to save more for their retirement? [26 minutes]

Guests: Carl Schramm, President of the Kauffman Foundation, Colonel Mike Meese, who teaches "Expeditionary Economics " at West Point, and Ann Marlow, who posts a blog titled Peace Later! on World Affairs Daily.Org and contributes frequently to the Wall Street Journal and the Weekly Standard. She is also a visiting fellow at the Hudson Institute. Should DOD be the new AID? The U.S. military has always helped bring order to shattered countries. Now some scholars are arguing the military should re-build shattered economies as well. But is this the right role for U.S. soldiers? [26 minutes]

Guests: Carlos Ponce, a fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy who served as the secretary of Venezuela's National Human Rights Commission. Mark Weisbrot, an economist and the co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. He co-wrote Oliver Stone's documentary about Hugo Chavez, "South of the Border." Roger Noriega, former Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere. He currently coordinates the American Enterprise Institute's program on Latin America. He has taken a struggling democracy and slowly consolidated his hold on power, nationalizing key industries such as oil and food distribution. Tyrant, Dictator, Socialist Hero; whatever you call him, Hugo Chavez is committed to keeping a tight rein on his power and those who oppose him. And now he has stated a commitment to developing nuclear capabilities. What do his policies mean for U.S. foreign policy? [26 minutes]

Guests: Mike McCurry, he served as the White House Press Secretary under President Bill Clinton and is a communications consultant for Arts and Labs, a coalition of technology and communication companies. Craig Aaron, he is the Managing Director of Free Press where he leads their programs, advocacy and public education work Cecilia Kang, she is the national technology reporter for the Washington Post. The Topic this Week: Net Neutrality: Can the Net Really Be "Neutral"? Over the past decade, the Internet has expanded enormously, changing the lives of Americans. Unlike other forms of communication, like telephones and television, the Internet has expanded largely without regulation. But that may be changing. As the use videos increases, the companies that provide the pipelines for Internet access may be running out of space. Many people and businesses worry that these companies will begin to limit their access to the Internet in a way it's never been limited before. How to resolve this issue is a high-stakes Washington question, with billions of dollars and some very important principles - like free speech and free enterprise - at stake. [26 minutes]

Guest: Pia Orrenius, author Beside the Golden Door Immigration, legal and otherwise, is a hot-button issue in America. Changing the rules about who is welcome to come to our shores - rolling out the welcome mat for more highly skilled workers, and rolling it up for the extended family members of immigrants already here will lead to a stronger American economy, according to author Pia Orrenius. She examines this idea in her new book, Beside the Golden Door, co-authored with Madeline Zavodny. [26 minutes]

Guests: Mohsen Sazegara, Iranian pro-democracy political activist; Joshua Muravchik, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
Iranian regime is saying that Egypt is example of an Islamist revolution spreading to Arab country, but, in fact, will the demands for democratic reform in Egypt spread to Iran? Host Jim Glassman is joined by Iranian pro-democracy political activist Mohsen Sazegara and Joshua Muravchik of The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and author of The Next Founders: Voices of Democracy in the Middle East. [26 minutes]

Guests: Joseph Nye, author of "The Future of Power"; Robert Kagan, Brookings Institution.
In his new book, Nye writes, "It is currently fashionable to predict a decline in the United States' power. But the United States is not in absolute decline, and in relative terms, there is reasonable probability that it will remain more powerful than any other state in the coming decades." Forty years ago Nye formulated the term "soft power" to describe diplomacy, communications and cultural influence as a force equal to and at times more desirable than the hard power of military dominance. Given the economic changes and the threat of terrorism in the world today, two eminent scholars debate the best way for the United States to wield its power now. [26 minutes]

Guests: Larry Downes, author of Unleashing the Killer App and fellow with the Stanford Law School Center for Internet and Society; Geoffrey Manne, Professor, Lewis & Clark Law School and Executive Director, International Center for Law & Economics.
A new book of essays, The Next Digital Decade: Essays on the Future of the Internet, by some of the most insightful observers of the internet age, asks what the next decade will bring in technological innovation, cultural change, regulation and the role of the government in the next phase of the evolving internet. Two guests who contributed essays to the book discuss their views about the effect of innovation and the role of government. [26 minutes]

Guests: Carlos Ponce, a fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy who served as the secretary of Venezuela's National Human Rights Commission. Mark Weisbrot, an economist and the co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. He co-wrote Oliver Stone's documentary about Hugo Chavez, "South of the Border." Roger Noriega, former Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere.
He currently coordinates the American Enterprise Institute's program on Latin America. He has taken a struggling democracy and slowly consolidated his hold on power, nationalizing key industries such as oil and food distribution. Tyrant, Dictator, Socialist Hero; whatever you call him, Hugo Chavez is committed to keeping a tight rein on his power and those who oppose him. And now he has stated a commitment to developing nuclear capabilities. What do his policies mean for U.S. foreign policy? [26 minutes]

Guests: Karen Davenport, Dir. of Health Policy at the Center for American Progress. Karen Ignani, Pres. & CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans. Gail Wilesnsky, Senior Fellow with Project HOPE.
Will your health care needs be covered under the new health care law? It's a question being asked by many ranging from parents with autistic children to patients undergoing kidney dialysis. Although it's been a year since President Obama signed the sweeping health care reform bill, the types of treatments and technologies covered by it are still being determined. Who should decide what gets covered and what doesn't? [26 minutes]

Amy Chua's book, "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" is a provocative memoir of the culture clash between Asian and Western values while raising her daughters in the traditional Chinese way. Her depiction of her harsh and critical approach to parenting has caused outrage in some quarters and brought applause from others. Chua feels the backlash is due, in part, to Americans' fears of a Chinese rise to prominence over America. [26 minutes]

Guest: Robert Zoellick, World Bank President.
Since 2007, World Bank President Robert Zoellick has been working to focus the institution on its primary missions: eradicating poverty and assisting developing nations. Jim conducts a one on one interview with Zoellick on the powerful emergence of new economies, the outlook for developed nations, and the global impact of the tumultuous Middle East uprisings. How can the Bank chart a course to stabilize and elevate the global economy? [26 minutes]

Guests: Former First Lady Laura Bush Dina Powell, global head of corporate engagement at Goldman Sachs, home of the 10,000 Women Initiative; Mina Sherzoy, manager with Deloitte Consulting and founder, Afghan Women's Business Association.
With the U.S. slated to draw down its troops in Afghanistan, and the Afghan government seeking to negotiate a peace with Taliban militants, the fragile strides made by Afghan women may be in jeopardy. Jim interviews former First Lady Laura Bush and others who are trying to help the women of Afghanistan gain greater access to education, health care, social rights and economic freedom. [26 minutes]

Guests: James W. Owens, former Chairman and CEO of Caterpillar, and current Senior Advisor to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Company; Greg Brenneman, Chairman of CCMP Capital Advisors and Executive Chairman of Quiznos Corporation; Floyd Kvamme, Partner Emeritus of Kleiner, Perkins Caufield and Byers venture capital firm and co-founder of National Semiconductor.
What if we cut corporate taxes, legislators committed to specific long-term tax rates so companies could better plan ahead and we made 4% economic growth per year a goal instead of settling for the anemic 2% we've had for the past few years? Jim Glassman and prominent business leaders discuss the current economic climate for corporations and what steps should be taken to improve short and long-term growth. [26 minutes]

Guests: Josipa Roksa, co-author, Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campus; Kim Clark, Senior Writer for Money Magazine; James Piereson, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
College is still considered key to the American dream. But is that dream hollow? "Academically Adrift" a new book by two college professors contends that many of today's college students show little-to-no improvement in critical thinking or written communication throughout their time at college. So why aren't our college students learning more - and are any schools getting it right? [26 minutes]

Guests: Former First Lady Laura Bush; Dina Powell, global head of corporate engagement at Goldman Sachs, home of the 10,000 Women Initiative; Mina Sherzoy, manager with Deloitte Consulting and founder, Afghan Women's Business Association.
With the U.S. slated to draw down its troops in Afghanistan, and the Afghan government seeking to negotiate a peace with Taliban militants, the fragile strides made by Afghan women may be in jeopardy. Jim interviews former First Lady Laura Bush and others who are trying to help the women of Afghanistan gain greater access to education, health care, social rights and economic freedom. [26 minutes]

Guests: Karen Davenport, Dir. of Health Policy at the Center for American Progress; Karen Ignani, Pres. & CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans; Gail Wilesnsky, Senior Fellow with Project HOPE.
Will your health care needs be covered under the new health care law? It's a question being asked by many ranging from parents with autistic children to patients undergoing kidney dialysis. Although it's been a year since President Obama signed the sweeping health care reform bill, the types of treatments and technologies covered by it are still being determined. Who should decide what gets covered and what doesn't? [26 minutes]

Guests: Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay, and current strategic advisor to venture capital firm Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers; Kevin A. Hassett, Senior Fellow and Director of Economic Policy Studies, American Enterprise Institute.
An in-depth interview with Meg Whitman, former head of e-Bay and former gubernatorial candidate in California, on ways to strengthen the American economy. This interview stems from the 4% Economic Growth Conference held at the George W. Bush Institute in the spring of 2011. The interview is supplemented by a discussion on the effect of taxation on growth with Kevin Hassett, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. [26 minutes]

Guests: Mark Thompson, Time Magazine Defense Writer and Pulitzer Prize winning author; Rudy DeLeon, Sr. Vice President of the Center for American Progress and former Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Procurement; Arthur Herman, historian and author (How the Scots Invented the Modern World), has written a new book, Freedom's Forge: How American Business Built the Arsenal of Democracy and Won WWII.
Jim discusses with his guests where and how the Pentagon can cut costs. [26 minutes]

Guests: Steve Largent, President of the CTIA - The Wireless Association and former US Representative from Oklahoma; Gordon Smith, President of the National Association of Broadcasters and former US Senator from Oregon.
According to some experts, the plethora of gadgets taking up capacity on the digital spectrum means we will run out of space soon. How can we regulate the airwaves to insure everyone gets equal access? Should we? [26 minutes]

Guest: Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, author of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer - winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction.
Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee , an oncologist and medical researcher at Columbia University, has written a comprehensive book examining the history of cancer. Through the stories of several cancer patients and researchers who have made great strides in understanding and fighting the disease, Mukherjee sounds an optimistic note about future medical advances in understanding and fighting cancer. [26 minutes]

Guests: Tony Pietrangelo, Sr. VP of the Nuclear Energy Institute; Charles Ferguson, President, Federation of American Scientists; Thomas Cochran, Senior Scientist, Natural Resources Defense Council.
The nuclear power industry has suffered severe setbacks recently that bring into question whether it will be a viable source of energy in the future. Yet China has committed to nuclear in a big way. A discussion of the future of nuclear energy at home and abroad. [26 minutes]

Guests: Charles Kenny, author and Economist at the Center for American Progress; Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Managing Director at the World Bank, Former Finance Minister of Nigeria; Jeni Klugman, Director of the Human Development Report Office, United Nations
In his new book, Getting Better: Why Global Development is Succeeding - and How We Can Improve the World Even More, Economist Charles Kenny examines increases in the quality of health care and education, arguing those factors show life in Africa is improving beyond what a strict analysis of life expectancy might show. [26 minutes]

Guests: Michael Barr, Former Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions, US Dept. of the Treasury and key architect of the Dodd-Frank bill Mark Calabria, Director of Financial Regulation Studies at the Cato Institute, former staff member of the US Senate Committee on Banking The financial reform bill referred to as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act purports to end the risk of banks and other financial institutions considered "too big to fail.' But will Dodd Frank end up being 'too big to work?' [26 minutes]

Guests: Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy Tara Bahrampour, reporter with the Washington Post and author of To See and See Again: A Life in Iran and America Oula Al-Risai, Syrian Democracy Activist and Political Asylum Refugee What are the lessons to be learned from the waves of democratic uprisings in the Middle East? Will they encourage similar movements elsewhere? How can these gains be consolidated? [26 minutes]

Guests: James W. Owens, former Chairman and CEO of Caterpillar, and current Senior Advisor to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Company. Greg Brenneman, Chairman of CCMP Capital Advisors and Executive Chairman of Quiznos Corporation Floyd Kvamme, Partner Emeritus of Kleiner, Perkins Caufield and Byers venture capital firm and co-founder of National Semiconductor. What if we cut corporate taxes, legislators committed to specific long-term tax rates so companies could better plan ahead and we made 4% economic growth per year a goal instead of settling for the anemic 2% we've had for the past few years? Jim Glassman and prominent business leaders discuss the current economic climate for corporations and what steps should be taken to improve short and long-term growth. [26 minutes]

Guests: Mark Thompson, Time Magazine Defense Writer and Pulitzer Prize winning author Rudy DeLeon, Sr. Vice President of the Center for American Progress and former Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Procurement [26 minutes]

Guests: Steve Largent, President of the CTIA - The Wireless Association and former US Representative from Oklahoma Gordon Smith, President of the National Association of Broadcasters and former US Senator from Oregon According to some experts, the plethora of gadgets taking up capacity on the digital spectrum means we will run out of space soon. How can we regulate the airwaves to insure everyone gets equal access? Should we? [26 minutes]

Guest: Daniel Pink, author of "Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us" Think money is the ultimate motivator? Well think again, says Daniel Pink, author of "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us." In his book, Pink contends that while money is important, it plays a relatively small role in what pushes us to strive, succeed and enjoy life. [26 minutes]

Guest: Joshua Foer, journalist and author of "Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything." In the age of mobile gadgetry, is a good memory less important? Why search the mind for an answer, when it can be found instantly on Google? This is a far cry from methods employed by ancient orators, who memorized long speeches, or medieval scholars who could recite entire books. Do we all have the capacity to remember everything if we so choose? [26 minutes]

Guests: Desmond Lachman, American Enterprise Institute; Martin Baily, Brookings Institution; Gregor Peter Schmitz, Der Spiegel.
The financial crisis in Greece has highlighted weak links in the Euro, the shared currency among European countries. Wealthier Northern European countries are being asked to prop up the banking systems of their weaker neighbors. Will America have to get involved? [26 minutes]

Guests: Doris Meissner, Senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute and former Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; Mark Krikorian, Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies; Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum.
Illegal immigration has become a hot button issue in America. Can a compromise be found between those who want all illegal immigrants to be sent home and those who want to give them amnesty and allow them to stay? [26 minutes]

Guests: Ambassador Teresita Schaffer, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia; Shuja Nawaz, Director of the South Asia Center at the Atlantic Council and author of the book Crossed Swords: Pakistan, its Army, and the Wars Within; Reza Jan, Research Analyst and Pakistan Team Lead for the Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute.
For the last ten years, the United States has fostered an alliance with Pakistan to fight terrorism and bring stability to Afghanistan. But the relationship between the two countries is badly frayed. How should America deal with Pakistan now? [26 minutes]

Guests: Matthew Rojansky, Deputy Director of the Russian and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; David Satter, Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute; Clifford Gaddy, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution.
Vladimir Putin's recent announcement that he intends to become Russia's President yet again indicates he rules Russian politics with an iron fist. Could he lead the country back behind a new Iron Curtain? [26 minutes]